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Oct 27, 2016

OPEN TO CHANGE

by Nellie Nutting

Can you name one moment in time that started a
chain reaction to transport you to where you are today? I can, and this month I thought I would share.

My family was living in Green River, Wyoming, and
I was doing what most moms with young children do – juggle; work, home, kids,
activities. I had a great job, healthy
kids, a solid marriage – all the key ingredients to a very fulfilling life,
right? But I had lost my spark. I had
lost my energy. I had lost my PASSION. How does that happen? Maybe some of you can relate. I had gotten so busy living life – doing all
the things I thought I was supposed to do, I had forgotten how to live.

Back then I was teaching in the developmental
studies program at a community college, and part of my job was working with
non-native English learners. Some of them where here on student visas or living
in Wyoming and building a life in the US.
They were from many areas of the world.
There were Mexicans and South Americans, but also Koreans, Chinese,
Japanese, and even a few Eastern European mail order brides who had be selected
by a local man to fill the spot of wife in a community where internet dating
was just starting to take off. Sounds
interesting, right? It was! And often I was challenged with new views and
cultures that were very different from my own.

So, how did I get from community college instructor
to business owner? I believe the
catalyst was a statement, an observation, really, by a Brazilian students. He was living in Wyoming because his wife had
come to the college on a teaching exchange.
He was well educated and affluent. He had been in Wyoming for about two
years at the time. Not only did I teach
English, basic writing and conversation, but we also discussed culture. When discussing work culture he very clearly
made this observation regarding the US.

“You”
(Americans), he said, “live to work, while we (Brazilians) only work to live.”

He went on to say Americans typically have two
weeks of vacation, at least for the first few years in a job. In Brazil they always have at least 6
weeks. He observed that most Americans
talk about work, even when not at work, socialize with work people, even take
work home – never seeming to be able to get it all done at the office. While in his country people left the office
and went to see family or friends and rarely took work home preferring to enjoy
the evening playing games or having a leisurely dinner. Americans would “choose” overtime so they
could buy more or go somewhere great for the weekend, while his coworkers
rarely worked over – perhaps they didn’t have the option – and had less “stuff”. When they traveled they stayed inexpensively
but for a much longer time – really taking in the culture of the place they
visited.

This thought rolled around in my head for the
whole winter semester – and still challenges me today. I really see two
meanings to his statement – one where living to work is tiring – like a
robot. And working only to live is
carefree – just working enough to have the necessities to be able to play – to
really enjoy life with zeal. This, I
believe, was his intended meaning.
However, I see another way of looking at this. One where the first part looks more like the
expression that goes something like this.

“If you love what you do, you will never work
another day in your life.”

I would suggest that there is a balance between
these two ideals. In the US we spend a
third of our lives at work. So really
enjoying it would certainly be a benefit, wouldn’t you agree?

In my case, at that time in my life, the first
meaning was a better description of me - I was living to work – with no energy
or passion towards it. His observation
hit home and moved me to search for a change.
When I decided to transition from teacher to entrepreneur, it was not
that I wanted to work less. In fact, I
didn’t quit my job when I started my business.
I continued to work for two and a half years, full time and added in my
business like a part time job. But it
was that CHANGE that sparked in me a passion for life again! I became aware that I had choices – that
just because I had a degree in education and a good job did NOT mean I had to
stay in that place forever. Just because
I had committed to this committee or that, didn’t mean they had me for life –
these were all MY CHOICES. I
rediscovered my personal power. No one
had me handcuffed. My business helped me
focus on managing not only my time and money, but also being aware of my
emotions and thoughts, the people I spent time with and the books, music, and
media I allowed into my space. It was a
rebirth!

Energy and passion doesn’t have to come from the
job you hold or your life circumstances –I bet we can all name people in
positions of waitress to doctor that we would deem passionate about their
job. They have gusto for life! When I got really clear that I was in charge
of my energy and passion and started paying attention to what effected them, my
zeal for life returned!

How about you?
Are you loving what you do and doing what you love? Or are you just
going through the motions, getting through each day and waiting for Friday to
arrive? If you have lost your passion I
would encourage you to spend some time in reflection. Think about how you are spending your time –
and with whom. Find a great self-improvement book or take up a new hobby. Revive a forgotten friendship or rediscover
your spouse or your children. You don’t
have to change careers to re-energize your life, but you may have to be OPEN TO
CHANGE.